John Donne - A Nocturnal Upon St Lucy's Day

Born in 1572, the poet and Anglican cleric John Donne is now considered the major metaphysical poet of his time. Metaphysics is a branch of philosophy that studies being, identity and change, space and time, and the relationship between mind and matter.  Extended metaphors known as conceits are one of the hallmarks of metaphysical poetry – unconventional, logically complex or surprising comparisons which challenge us intellectually rather than appeal to our emotions. John Donne employed conceits to explore the relationship between the sensory and the abstract, using the unlikeness of the two things compared to surprise and hold the reader’s attention.  Donne often used scientific and technological advances of his day as a source for his conceits. 

In A Nocturnal Upon St. Lucy’s Day John Donne describes a speaker’s reaction to the death of a woman he loves.  Referencing the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year, he captures the overwhelming sense of bereavement in one of the most passionate depictions of love and loss in poetry. 

While St Lucy’s Day can seem complex and difficult on first reading a close examination of the text reveals a poem of striking intensity and beauty. 

JOINING DETAILS:

• Single session study facilitated by Caroline Hammond
• Wednesday 5 March, 6.00 – 8.00 pm
• £30 to include background materials and opening notes
• The poem can be found on the Poetry Foundation website here and in collections of John Donne’s work.